Practical discussion on contemporary life challenges from an ancient perspective.

Friday, August 03, 2012

INDIFFERENCE AND INIQUITY

“And at that
time I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish the men who settle down
comfortably, who say to themselves: The Lord will not do good or evil.”
(Zephaniah 1:12 HCSB)

If we are indifferent toward
iniquity, we may be assured God is not!The word of God delivered by the prophet Zephaniah underscores that.

One understands why a sinful people
despised prophets.Their words were like
an alarm clock on Monday morning, jolting one out of sleep, a reminder of work
to do.They were in no mood to hear it.

In chapter one, we see THEIR CONDITION BEFORE GOD.

“And at that
time I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish the men who settle down
comfortably, who say to themselves: The Lord will not do good or evil.” (Zephaniah
1:12 HCSB)

They were indifferent toward
iniquity and this led to compromise.Some were a lot like Lot—who did not commit the sins of Sodom, nor in
his heart condone them—but neither confronted nor condemned them.His silence was deafening.It has been said, “Silence is golden.”Sometimes, it is just plain yellow!

Speaking up causes a
disturbance.Dan Cathy discovered that.He created a national uproar, when he as the
owner of Chik-fil-A, dared to say that marriage was a commitment of a man and
woman, and a union that God blesses, while a nation that rejects this faces
judgment.It would have been a lot
easier to be quiet and look the other way.The prophet Zephaniah would not, but many of his contemporaries did.

Then, compromise for others dwelling
in Jerusalem went beyond indifference toward the iniquity around them, but also
toward the iniquity within them.Their
compromise with wickedness, led them farther and farther away from God.While they still went through some of the
religious ritual associated with the worship of God, they had given their
hearts to idolatry.

“I will stretch
out My hand against Judah and
against all the residents of Jerusalem.I will cut off every vestige of Baal from this place, the
names of the pagan priestsalong with the priests;
those who bow in worship on the rooftops to the heavenly host;those who bow and pledge loyalty to the Lord but also
pledge loyalty to Milcom; and those who turn
back from following the Lord, who do not seek the Lord or inquire of Him.”
(Zephaniah 1:4-6)

It would be like those who go to
church on Sunday to salve their conscience and then live like the devil Monday
through Saturday to satisfy their lust.They sit in the pew—in their sporadic attendance—yawn, look at their
watch, wonder occasionally, “What is that preacher so worked up about?”Their minds wander toward where they will go
for lunch, what time does the game start, anything but the thought of standing
before God.That kind of
self-examination is disquieting.Finally, they breathe a sigh of relief, “Amen!”The service concludes and they smile as they
walk out, shake the pastor’s hand and congratulate him, “Enjoyed the sermon,
Pastor.”What he or she means is, “I did
my duty” as they leave self-satisfied—now it’s on to bigger and better
things.What the pastor thinks is, “How
can they have enjoyed that?It was a
message meant to confront them and shake them up.”Doubtless, Zephaniah felt similarly.

But, preachers don’t know for sure
what is in people’s hearts.God, however,
is another story.In picturesque
language, He is pictured as coming with a spotlight to shine into the dark
shadows of people’s souls, and find those indifferent toward iniquity.They thought God was aloof.Since they were indifferent, they judged Him
to be.God was going to rock their
world.

“The great Day
of the Lord is near, near and rapidly approaching.Listen, the Day of the Lord—then the
warrior's cry is bitter. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble
and distress, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of clouds and blackness, a day of
trumpet [blast] and battle cry against the fortified cities,and against the high corner towers.” (Zephaniah
1:14-16)

The temptation now is to hit the snooze button and roll over
and go back to sleep.We think, “Well
that was then, and this is now.Too bad
for those Jews in ancient Jerusalem, but that doesn’t affect me.”

Zephaniah’s alarming words go far beyond his day, to the Day
of the Lord—the end time judgments visited upon the entire globe—and that could
begin very soon.

“I will bring
distress on mankind, and they will walk like the blind because they have sinned
against the Lord.Their blood will be
poured out like dust and their flesh like dung.

Their silver and their gold will not be able to rescue them on
the day of the Lord's wrath.The whole earth will be consumed by the fire of His
jealousy.For He will make a complete, yes,
a horrifying end of all the inhabitants of the earth.” (Zephaniah 1:17-18)

In chapter two we face THEIR
CORRECTION BY GOD.

“Gather yourselves together; gather together, undesirable
nation, before the decree takes effect and the
day passes like chaff, before the burning of the Lord's anger overtakes you, before
the day of the Lord's anger overtakes you.

Seek the Lord, all you humble of the earth, who carry out
what He commands.Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be
concealed on the day of the Lord's anger.”(Zephaniah 2:1-3)

God firmly, yet lovingly, will correct them.

He corrects their complacency with a call to come
urgently,““Gather
yourselves together; gather together, undesirable nation,
before the decree takes effect and the day passes like chaff, before the
burning of the Lord's anger overtakes you, before the day of the Lord's anger
overtakes you.” (v.1)

They had heard it all before.Nothing had happened yet.But, it would—and it did.Zephaniah ministered in the days of Josiah’s
reign (1:1).It was a brief respite of
revival.Josiah would be the last godly
king before Jerusalem would burn like chaff.God meant business.

We may be tempted to respond in much the same way.After all, haven’t preachers warned of the
return of Christ and the Judgment for two thousand years?The caricature of the wild-eyed prophet
standing on a street corner in a robe, wearing a sandwich board sign reading,
“Repent! The end is near” is familiar to us, and is the subject of humor.Nobody takes it seriously.We should.

God corrects their compromise with a call to commit
unequivocally, “Seek the Lord, all you humble of
the earth, who carry out what He commands.Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be concealed on the
day of the Lord's anger.”(v.2)

They had turned away from God, and now needed to turn around—that’s
repentance.It is making a U-Turn on
life’s highway.The stubborn pride that
causes one to refuse confession and the sinful passion that leads one to reject
commitment must be exorcised and humility and holiness must be exercised.

This was the only avenue of escape from God’s anger.We have heard the saying perhaps, “God allows
U-Turns” and it is true.What a
comforting thought that is to a sinner like me!But, it has its limitations which make this “bumper sticker” theology
more complicated.You can’t make a
U-Turn anytime, anywhere.Certainly,
there are opportunities, but haven’t you also seen the sign indicating, “No
U-Turn”?There could come a time too
late—the decision to seek the Lord is urgent and needs to be unequivocal.When you commit to make a U-Turn—do it!Or you might get run over.The sinner is speeding down the road the
wrong way and is about to have a head-on collision with the wrath of God.When that happens, it is too late to make a
U-Turn.

“I have heard
the taunting of Moab
and the insults of the Ammonites, who have taunted My people and threatened
their territory.Therefore, as I live--[this is] the
declaration of the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel—Moab will be like Sodom and
the Ammonites like Gomorrah—a place overgrown with weeds, a salt pit, and a
perpetual wasteland.The remnant of My
people will plunder them; the remainder of My nation will dispossess them.This is what
they get for their pride, because they have taunted and acted arrogantly against
the people of the Lord of Hosts.” (Zephaniah 2:8-10)

When the fire fell on Sodom, it was too late to run.The destruction was complete.Zephaniah warns the Moabites and Ammonites
that God will do the same to them.Jesus
likewise says that in the last days,

“It will be the
same as it was in the days of Lot: People went on eating, drinking, buying,
selling, planting, building. But on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur
rained from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be like that on the day the Son of Man
is revealed. On that day, a man on the housetop, whose
belongings are in the house, must not come down to get them. Likewise the man
who is in the field must not turn back. Remember Lot's wife!” (Luke 17:28-32)

Such
indifference toward iniquity!They
expected each day to be like the day before.No fire had fallen from heaven—the citizens of Sodom
and Gomorrah
were complacent, apathetic, oblivious to God and the impending judgment.Moab and Ammon did the same.It is characteristic of our culture
today.Why can’t we see where that road
leads?Making a U-Turn is long overdue.

In
chapter three we find THEIR CONSECRATION
TO GOD.

“Yahweh your God is among you, a warrior who saves.He will rejoice over you with gladness. He
will bring [you] quietness with His love. He will delight in you with shouts of
joy." (Zephaniah 3:17)

God had warned the Jews of a time of consumption as they
would be consecrated in sacrifice:

“Be silent in
the presence of the Lord God, for the Day of the Lord is near.Indeed, the Lord has prepared a sacrifice; He has
consecrated His guests.

On the day of the Lord's sacrifice I will punish the
officials, the king's sons, and all who are dressed in foreign clothing.”
(Zephaniah 1:7-8)

But, in the last days the Jews will enter a time of
consolation as they will be consecrated in salvation:

“I will gather
those who have been driven from the appointed festivals; [they will be] a
tribute from you and a reproach [on her].
Yes, at that time I will deal with all who afflict you.I will save the lame and gather the
scattered; I will make those who were disgraced throughout the earth receive
praise and fame. At that time I will bring you back, yes, at
the time I will gather you.I will give
you fame and praise among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your
fortunes before your eyes.Yahweh has
spoken.” (Zephaniah 3:18-20)

God will bind up the broken-hearted, give grace to the
grieving, console those who are contrite, restore those who are repentant.The difficulties the nation would face would
be the Master’s ox goads to drive Israel back to His pasture,

“The remnant of
Israel will no longer do wrong or tell lies; a deceitful tongue will not be
found in their mouths.But they will pasture and lie
down, with nothing to make [them] afraid.” (Zephaniah 3:13)

I would not suggest that the difficulties you may be facing
are necessarily the result of your personal indifference toward iniquity—but
they may be.God may be using these
crises to bring you to your knees in confession.Search your heart—God does ( Zeph.1:12).

Doubtless,
the multitude of troubles that are coming exponentially to America and our
world are the result of indifference toward iniquity.Not just indifference among those who
practice such evils—for that is the inclination of the unregenerate.It always has been and always will be.The source of our coming demise is the people
of God who by and large have become accustomed to and assimilated into the
corruption of contemporary culture.

Jesus
did not have good things to say about those who hide their light under a
basket.I understand why we do.Those who are asleep in the dark will not be
happy when you shine a light in their face.But, if their house is on fire and they are able to escape from it, they
will be grateful later.

Our
Lord’s words to His followers who lose their potency to season society as salt
are serious,

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose
its taste, how can it be made salty? It's no longer good for anything but to be
thrown out and trampled on by men.” (Matthew 5:13)

Salt in a wound stings.That’s why we hesitate to apply it.Those who are stung by our saltiness will retaliate.This is why Jesus prefaced that statement
with this,

“Those who are
persecuted for righteousness are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.You are blessed when they insult and persecute you and
falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me. Be glad and rejoice,
because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the
prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12)

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About Me

I am a mountaineer by birth--a native of Asheville, NC. For a period of ten years I lived in the Charlotte area and for the last eighteen, I have been "home." I was brought up in a Christian family. In fact, I went to church nine months before I was born! Despite the best efforts of parents and preachers, I went astray. The Prodigal Son story that Jesus told in Luke 15 became my story--a sordid life of drugs and booze and that's enough for you to know. But at the age of eighteen all I had been taught came flooding back into my mind when I saw the mess I was in. Christ changed me. I gave my life to Him and as a result have spent the last three decades preaching the Gospel. I'm not all I ought to be and certainly not what I one day shall be, but thankfully, not what I used to be! God has blessed me with a great wife, five wonderful children and so far, twelve grandchildren. To Him be the glory and praise, now and forever.